Nut-cleaning machine.



S. A. FREER.

NUT CLEANING MACHNB.

APPLIOATION FILED JAN. 2s, 1912.

Patented Got. '7, 1913.

l] Inventor, Jeplzen JZ. freer.

wzlinesses.

AccrLUMlA PLANOGRAPH Co., wAsHyNa'roN. D. c.

STEPHENEA. FREER,-OF.EL MONTE,.CALIEORNIA NUT-CLEANING -MACHINE Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Got. "2', 1913.

Application filed January 23.', 1912:.I Serial No. 67259.13.;

To all 'whom t may concern j Be it known that I, STEPHEN-A. Famer, a citizen of the United lStates, residing at El Monte, in the county of Los Angeles andi State of California, have invented new and; useful Improvementsin Nut-Cleaninghita-k chines, of wiich the following is a specifi'- cation.

This invention relates to improvements-in nut cleaning machines, andparticularly to such machines as areadapted vto clean nuts in dry condition;

It is also an'object ofthe invention to provide al travelingk conveyingl means lfor carrying nuts to be lcleansed and brushed for operating upon'said nuts andcleaningf them upon all sides.

It is a further object of the invention `to provide a nut cleaning mechanism in which the nuts are carried beneath swinging? brushes, after which they are discharged upon a separating device.

Tn the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the mechanism constructedl in accordance withV the present inventionpy Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same. Fig? 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view= takenk upon the line. 3-3 of Fig; .1. Fig. ill; is a detail sectional view through adjacent strands of a nut supporting webbing, a nut being shown in position thereon. Fig. 5 is a top plan view of a modified form of supporting webbing for the nuts.

The details and features of the inventionf will now be more particularly described,' reference being had to the said drawing in which- 5 indicates an elongated approximately` rectangular housing, usually mounted uponK standards or legs 6. Mounted withinV the housing 5 is a traveling conveyer 7 which: at one end of the device passes outpof the housing and-around a supporting roller 8 which is journaled in bearing blocks 9 adjustably supported upon arms 10, which: arms project from the housing 5. Adjusting screws 11 are employed for holding the blocks 9, so as to maintain a proper 'taut-Vfl ness in the conveyer 7 The said traveling conveyer passes over intermediate support'-v ing and nut turning rollers 12 and 13 "arranged within the housing 5 and also about a driving roller 14 near the discharge end of the mechanism. From the roller 11i the conveyer passes downwardly and out housing F rein the roller15 the conveyer passes to the roller 8f again.

The driving 'rollerflft is actuated in kany suitablemanner and vusually as in the manner hereinafterv described 4for moving the conveyer 7x The said conveyerv 7 is generally formed of a series of parallel'rods or supporting wiresl? as shown in Figs. 2 ande:E of the"drawing,'the ends of said Iwires being `bent and linked together to form a tiexiblefapronor |`conveyer. The spaces between the wires'are-fof ysuch size as to 'partially receive the'nuts` to be cleaned but not so as to permit the nuts to drop through ythe conveyer. I The 'nuts usually assume a position approximately like that shown in Fig. 4.

ln orderito thoroughly brush andclean the `nuts and also to turnl them over upon the conveyor, so that all sides thereof will be cleaned,- the 1rolls 12 and '13 are provided to' turnthe nuts'intermediate of a series of movablefbrushes 18 vextending transversely of the housing 5 and close enough to the upper surface'of the traveling conveyor to engage nuts resting upon the same. The said brushes aremounted so as to swing or oscillate longitudinallywith respect to the conveyer'4 and are made nearly the full width of the housing 5, so as to reach every part of the'said conveyer The brushes are also made Iof considerablewidth as indicated in dotted linesin Fig; 1, So as to be capable of thoroughly brushing the nuts as they are moved lback and forth.

In .order to rock or oscillate the `brushes the 'said brushesare carried upon` arms 19,

Vwhich project downwardly from roch shafts 4causes them to move simultaneously. @ne

end of the said connecting rod 23 is also pivotally connected with a pitman 24, which extends to and engages a crank 25 carried by a transversely arranged shaft 26. The rotation of the said shaft 26, will thus throughthe bottom of the housingv and `around a. lower guide roller 15 which is `journaled upon projections 16 carried by the through the agency of the said pitman 24, cause a reciprocation of the connecting rod 23 and a proper swinging or oscillation of the brushes 18.

The shaft 26 is provided at one end with a sprocket wheel 27 by which the shaft 26 may be rotated. The said sprocket wheel 27 is driven by a sprocket chain 28, which passes about a sprocket wheel 27 secured to the driving roller 14 of the conveyer, the said sprocket chain thus passing to a driving sprocket 30 carried by a shaft 31, which is journaled upon the standards 6, of the housing at one end thereof. The movement of said sprocket chain, thus produces a feeding of the conveyer belt through the housing 5 and a swinging of the brushes back and forth, over theupper surface of said conveyor.

The housing` 5 is provided at one end with a feed hopper 32 having a chute 33, extending downwardly into the housing 5, so that the nuts to be cleaned are merely emptied into the said hopper and will be distributed by the chute 33 upon the conveyer 7. Means is also provided for fanning th-e dirt and dust from the nuts,`said means preferably acting upon the nuts while they are being brushed upon the conveyer. Extending upwardly from the housing 5 is a casing 34, in which is mounted a revolubleV fan 35 having a series of fan arms or paddles. A shaft 3G carrying the said paddles is journaled at its ends in the said casing 34. One end of the said'shaft projects be yond the casing 34 and has secured to it a sprocket wheel 37. A. sprocket chain 38 connects the said sprocket wheeA 37, with another sprocket wheel 39, which is secured to a shaft 40 journaled above the shaft 3l and parallel thereto, upon the same standards 6. The shaft 4G extends tothe other side of the mechanism and is provided with a belt wheel or pulley 4l, which may be connected Vwith any suitable source of power for driving the same. The shaft 40 is also provided with agear wheel 43, adjacent to the sprocket wheel 39, which meshes with a gear 44 carried by the shaft 31. The driving of the shaft 40 thus actuates through the said gears, the shaft 31 and the two sprocket chains 38 and 28 are also driven simultano ously.

The materials brushed from the nuts drop through the/webbing o-f the conveyer 7 and are collected upon inclined bottom floors 45 and 4.6.which converge toward each o-ther,

so as to deliver the dirt 'and other materials to a discharge chute 47, which projects laterally from the housing 5 as clearly shown in Fig. 3. The nuts themselves are carried toward the discharge end of the housing where they fall upon an apron 48, of somewhat wider mcsh than the conveyer 7. rI`his allows the smaller nuts to fall through and into a transverse trough 49, which extends outwardly through one side of the housing 5. The larger'nuts which will not fall through the mesh ofthe apron 48, are carried to a discharge spout 5() at the end of the housing. Bags or other receptacles 51 are usually located beneath this spout to receive the said nuts.

The conveyor may be formed of a webbing having interwoven strands of wire Vor other material as shown at 52 in Fig; 5 of the drawing if desired, though usually the parallel transversely extending strands 0r rods shown in Figs. 2 and 4 are preferable. Of course it will be understood that the nuts cleaned o-r treated in this mechanism are.

first shelled, the hulls being removed in any other desired mechanism, or in any other manner before they are placed in the hopper 32.

What l claim is:

A nut cleaning device, comprising a housing, an endless conveyer supported therein, said conveyer formed of a flexible metallic structure provided with transverse bars adapted to embrace and support a nut in operative position thereon, a hopper for vdesucceeding brush, a fan connected to saidl housing, a discharge belt to receive the nuts as they are cleaned, ahopper to receive the material brushed from the nuts, and means to drive said conveyer and fan, and reciprocate said brushes simultaneously.

In witness that l claim the foregoing l have hereunto subscribed my name this 13th day of January, 1912. y Y

STEPHEN A; FREER. wWitnesses:

E. STADTMAN, EARLE R. POLLARD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. C. 

